Peat or peat moss will lower your pH. Look for filter media containing peat).
There is a houshould product that can raise pH (it’s called biocarbonate which is ordinary baking soda; I use baking soda in my high pH african cichlid tanks all the time).
When modifying pH you want to do it slowly over several days. pH 6.5 is ten times more acidic than ph 7.5.
The experts didn’t tell you one thing that is very important. Never change the pH of a tank by more than .3 at any one time. The fish will go into pH shock and usually will die. That is usually the reason new fish die when you bring them home (other than ammonia poisoning from not doing water changes often enough.
If you feel you must lower it, only lower it by .2-.3 every 5-6 days. This will keep them from being affected by rapid pH changes.
Discus are particularly touchy fish and should never be subjected to rapid changes of water quality. After you have acheived the desired pH, your weekly water changes, of 25-30% pH correct fresh water,should be increased to every third day to maintain the water quality as perfect as possible.
Professional discus breeders do 50% water changes EVERY DAY to maintain the health and well being of their breeding stock. A friend of mine who breeds discus has a continual drip system in his fry tanks to constantly keep the water pure.
You have chosen a difficult species to maintain, good luck. Do a lot of online research and follow the suggestions of the discus experts. That is, people who have actually raised and spawned discus.
I have kept discus in the past, but lost 6 beautiful marlboro reds to a faulty heater. They were just approaching breeding size. I have had none since then (about a year ago). They were in a 30 gallon tank with lots of live plants. Live plants help lower and maintain pH levels.
My water out of the faucet is at 7.4 which is perfect for the other fish I keep, African cichlids. I did not add anything to the discus tank to lower the pH, so they were at or near 7.0 with the live plants in the tank.
Why? Most literature claims a pH of 6.1 to 7.5 is the healthy range. Changing the pH more than a .2-.3 is a bad idea. 1st it’s generally lethal to do that change in a short amount of time. 2nd your water source generally stays at the same level, and water changes may result in large (lethal) swings. 3rd the stuff you put into you water often has unintended effects. (You are adding acid.)
Personally I’d leave it alone, or buy some pH down and take it down to 7.3. Also you should test the water hardness. Your KH shouldn’t be above 3, but given your pH I’d guess your water is pretty hard. You might try diluting your tap water with distilled water, but do it slowly. Note that straight diluted water is bad for fish.
follow:
Peat or peat moss will lower your pH. Look for filter media containing peat).
There is a houshould product that can raise pH (it’s called biocarbonate which is ordinary baking soda; I use baking soda in my high pH african cichlid tanks all the time).
When modifying pH you want to do it slowly over several days. pH 6.5 is ten times more acidic than ph 7.5.
the simple way of this is just put distilled water to it
The experts didn’t tell you one thing that is very important. Never change the pH of a tank by more than .3 at any one time. The fish will go into pH shock and usually will die. That is usually the reason new fish die when you bring them home (other than ammonia poisoning from not doing water changes often enough.
If you feel you must lower it, only lower it by .2-.3 every 5-6 days. This will keep them from being affected by rapid pH changes.
Discus are particularly touchy fish and should never be subjected to rapid changes of water quality. After you have acheived the desired pH, your weekly water changes, of 25-30% pH correct fresh water,should be increased to every third day to maintain the water quality as perfect as possible.
Professional discus breeders do 50% water changes EVERY DAY to maintain the health and well being of their breeding stock. A friend of mine who breeds discus has a continual drip system in his fry tanks to constantly keep the water pure.
You have chosen a difficult species to maintain, good luck. Do a lot of online research and follow the suggestions of the discus experts. That is, people who have actually raised and spawned discus.
I have kept discus in the past, but lost 6 beautiful marlboro reds to a faulty heater. They were just approaching breeding size. I have had none since then (about a year ago). They were in a 30 gallon tank with lots of live plants. Live plants help lower and maintain pH levels.
My water out of the faucet is at 7.4 which is perfect for the other fish I keep, African cichlids. I did not add anything to the discus tank to lower the pH, so they were at or near 7.0 with the live plants in the tank.
Why? Most literature claims a pH of 6.1 to 7.5 is the healthy range. Changing the pH more than a .2-.3 is a bad idea. 1st it’s generally lethal to do that change in a short amount of time. 2nd your water source generally stays at the same level, and water changes may result in large (lethal) swings. 3rd the stuff you put into you water often has unintended effects. (You are adding acid.)
Personally I’d leave it alone, or buy some pH down and take it down to 7.3. Also you should test the water hardness. Your KH shouldn’t be above 3, but given your pH I’d guess your water is pretty hard. You might try diluting your tap water with distilled water, but do it slowly. Note that straight diluted water is bad for fish.